ATOMIC

STRUCTURE
ATOMIC NUMBER:
•The total number of protons in the nucleus of an atom gives us the atomic
number of that atom.
•It is represented with the letter ‘Z.’
•All the atoms of a particular element have the same number of protons, and
hence the same atomic number.
•Atoms of different elements have different atomic numbers.
•For example,
all carbon atoms have the atomic number of 6, whereas all atoms of Oxygen
have 8 protons in their nucleus
MASS NUMBER:
•The number of protons and neutrons combined to give us the mass number of
an atom.
•It is represented using the letter ‘A.’
•As both protons and neutrons are present in the nucleus of an atom, they are
together called nucleons.
•For example,
An atom of carbon has 6 protons and 6 neutrons. Thus, its mass number is 12.
•While the number of protons remains the same in all atoms of an element, the
number of neutrons can vary. Thus, atoms of the same element can have
different mass numbers, and these are called isotopes.
ATOMIC ELEMENT SYMBOL ATOMIC MASS
NUMBER
1 HYDROGEN H 1

2 HELIUM He 4

3 LITHIUM Li 6

4 BERYLLIUM Be 9

5 BORON B 10

6 CARBON C 12

7 NITROGEN N 14

8 OXYGEN O 16

9 FLUORINE F 18

10 NEON Ne 20
ATOMIC NUMBER ELEMENT SYMBOL ATOMIC MASS

11 SODIUM Na 22

12 MAGNESIUM Mg 24

13 ALUMINIUM Al 26

14 SILICON Si 28

15 PHOSPHORUS P 30

16 SULPHUR S 32

17 CHLORINE Cl 35

18 ARGON Ar 39.0983

19 POTASSIUM K 39.098

20 CALCIUM Ca 40
SHELL MODEL OF AN ATOM:
• It explains the arrangement of different electrons present around the nucleus
of an atom as per energy levels.
• The atomic shell model explains the structure of atoms. The negatively
charged fundamental particles which are known as electrons are considered to
occupy diffuse shells in the space that surrounds the positively charged
nucleus. The shell which is closest to the nucleus is the first shell.
The representation of the orbits is done by letters and numbers such as K, L,
M, N, O…. and 1,2,3,4…. respectively.  The arrangement of electrons in
different shells and sub-shells is known as the electronic configuration of a
particular element.
•The maximum number of electrons present in a particular shell is calculated
by the formula 2n2, where “n” represents the shell number.
•K shell is the first shell and it can hold up to 2(1)2 = 2 electrons.
•Similarly, L shell is the second shell and it can hold up to 2(2)2 = 8 electrons.
This formula helps to calculate the maximum number of electrons that an orbit
can accommodate.
SHELL VALUE OF (n) MAX NUMBER OF
ELCTRONS

K 1 2

L 2 8

M 3 18

N 4 32

O 5 50

P 6 72